Page 36 of Not My Finest Hour

“My head is throbbing. But if I was as drunk as you say, it makes sense.”

“Oh, yeah,” I say, suddenly realizing something I failed to address yesterday. “To answer your question from last night, no, I’ve never seen a pickle tornado.”

Wesley cocks his head to the side. “What?”

A laugh escapes my lips. “I’ll explain on the ferry.”

I spentthe ferry ride telling Wesley everything. There were a few times when he cringed at his behavior, and he said it would be a while before he drank Marsala, or any alcohol at all. The one bright spot of the journey back was that before we all got back into our cars to depart the ferry, he wished Justin and I well, which I thought was considerate.

While driving back to my place, Justin asks, “Do you want to get some breakfast?”

“Maybe. But I’d like to go home first and at least change my clothes.” Back at the hotel, I returned Justin’s clothes to him, so I’m wearing my sweater and dress pants from last night.

“Yeah, that’s probably a good idea for me too. What I’m wearing is suitable for fast food and that’s about it. And since we just had that last night, I don’t really want that again.”

“I should probably check in with my sister. I’m not sure if she’s home, but I should at least send her a text to let her know I’m on my way back to the house.”

“Does your sister usually keep tabs on your whereabouts?”

“No. I mean, she didn’t used to. But when I spent the night at your place after going out to the bar, I never sent her a text to tell her I wasn’t going to be home. She thought something had happened to me. So now she gets a little nervous when she doesn’t hear from me,” I say with a sheepish grin.

“That’s understandable. She’s just looking out for you.”

When we pull up to the house, Fern’s car is there, as well as Brett’s. That means he stayed here last night, and the two of them are home—alone. I send her a courtesy text letting her know that I’m here so I don’t interrupt anything that might be going on in there.

Justin pulls up to the curb and turns off his car. Unlike the last time he dropped me off here, he doesn’t have work to get to, or anywhere to be that I know of. That leaves the whole day for us to spend together. And I want that day to include meeting at least one member of my family, and Brett, who is my soon-to-be family member.

“Will you come inside and meet my sister and her fiancé?” I’m not going to force him to do anything he’s not comfortable with, but I really want him to say yes.

He hesitates, then looks to me for reassurance. “Are you sure you want me to meet them now? Look at me,” he says, plucking his sweatshirt. “I feel like a slob.”

“They’re not going to care.” He gives me a look like he doesn’t believe me. “I promise,” I say with a smile.

He stares ahead at the road for a second before reaching for the door handle. “Okay, but if this goes poorly, it wasn’t my idea.”

I can’t help but grin at him. The fact that he’s so nervous about meeting Fern is sweet. It shows that making a good first impression really matters to him. And it’s important to him that my family likes him. “You’re going to do fine. Brett is a really nice guy and my sister cares more about a person than their appearance.”

We walk together up the steps, and I knock twice before opening the door. Fern and Brett aren’t in the living room, but I do hear them talking and it sounds like they’re in the kitchen.

“Hello?” I yell, merely to announce my presence.

Fern pokes her head out of the entryway to the kitchen. “Hey, welcome home,” she says without much thought. She’s about to retreat to the kitchen when she sees my companion. She looks at me, then back at Justin. I can see the questions in her eyes. I didn’t tell her in my text that I was going to be bringing someone in. It was kind of a spur-of-the-moment decision. She smiles warmly at Justin and introduces herself. She has to collect herself when he gives his name. I bet she thought he was Wesley since she has no idea what happened last night.

“It’s nice to finally meet you,” Fern says. “Have you two had breakfast yet?” When I shake my head, she says, “Good. You two should eat with us. We were just getting started making pancakes, and it wouldn’t take much to make a few extra.”

“Thank you. I’d love that,” Justin says.

“Justin, why don’t you join Brett and me in the kitchen for a cup of coffee while Dahlia goes and changes her clothes? She’s a little overdressed for this, don’t you think?” Fern says. She and Brett are still in their pajamas, so at least Justin doesn’t need to be concerned with looking like a slob. He fits right in.

“I think that’s a good idea. I’m tired of wearing these clothes,” I say. “When I get back, I can tell you all about my night last night.”

I hurry through changing my clothes so Justin isn’t alone in the kitchen for too long. I know he can handle himself, but he’s just met Fern, and I don’t know what embarrassing stories she’s planning on sharing with him.

When I get back, he’s sitting at the table sipping a cup of coffee while Fern and Brett are doing the cooking.

“I offered to help, but your sister said she didn’t need any,” Justin says to me.

“You’re a guest. You’re not supposed to help out,” Fern replies.

---